Red hair is mainly considered the preserve of northern Europe, a Celtic-Germanic trait. This is what resulted in London-based photographer Michelle Marshall’s quest to capture as many Afro-Caribbean redheads as possible as part of her project, MC1R

MC1R, or Melanocortin 1 receptor if you’re feeling fancy, is the gene responsible for red hair. Both parents need to be carriers of the recessive MC1R gene in order for a child to be a redhead. Mutations in it can cause various degrees of pigmentation. It’s estimated that in Scotland, 13 percent of the population have ginger hair. Compare this with the world’s population, where 1 to 2 percent is thought to be redhead, and redheads from ethnic minorities are even rarer.